Kiss and Tell
by longlivetheprat
Summary: (or, The One in Which Merlin Gets Shagged... and Everyone Notices)


Elyan was the first to notice.

It was midday and he was in the armory, polishing his sword after the rigorous training Arthur had put him through. He smiled and nodded when Merlin walked in, rag in hand.

"Hello Elyan," Merlin greeted cheerfully, moving to pick up a nearby shield and then attacking it with his rag. "How was training today?"

Elyan grimaced. "You should ask Arthur," he said. "Man is on a mission. Thank God my session is over, but I feel sorry for poor Leon – his turn's next."

Merlin shook his head in fond exasperation. "I'll have to speak with Arthur about that," he said.

Elyan nodded emphatically. "Yes, please do. If there's anyone he'll listen to, it's you."

"Oh that's not true. He listens to you lot as well."

Elyan shook his head. "Yeah. But he values your opinion more than ours," he said. "He really respects you, you know."

Merlin blushed. "Yeah, I know," he mumbled and turned to look at Arthur through the window, the indefatigable prince still practicing all by himself on the quad. Merlin watched for a few moments, smile on his lips, before he suddenly started, as if just realizing what he was doing, and walked to the far wall to get another shield.

Except…

"Merlin, are you hurt?"

Merlin frowned in confusion. "No, why?"

"You're walking funny. I thought you-"

And then Merlin's blush deepened and he dropped his rag. It took a moment to process, but when Merlin bent down to pick up the cloth, wincing as he righted himself, Elyan's eyes widened.

"You-" the knight said, and then there was a clatter as Merlin dropped the shield he'd been holding as well and fled, muttering something about '_stupid Arthur'_ and '_swords'_.

Elyan sat there for a while, immobile, until Arthur sauntered into the room, looked curiously at the door, and asked, "Was that Merlin I just saw?"

And then Elyan was muttering his own excuses, something about _'shields'_ and _'red as a tomato,'_ before inclining his head in respect and exiting the room, leaving a very confused Arthur behind him.

Second to notice was Gwen, though it's debatable whether she actually saw it or Lance whispered it into her ear (they were inseparable these days, and Merlin was sure he'd seen Lance stare oddly at him while walking down a corridor that morning and then effectively colliding into an approaching column). Either way, she stopped Merlin as he was exiting the kitchens with Arthur's (very late) lunch and pulled him into a branching corridor. "Who was it?" was the first thing she said, practically bouncing with excitement.

"Who was what?" Merlin asked with a nervous laugh, gently extracting his arm from her grasp.

"You know," Gwen said, pointedly trailing her gaze down his body and fixing it on his crotch. When she met his eyes again, he was blushing.

"It was nobody," he stuttered. "I mean, I don't know what you're talking about."

Gwen settled her hands on her hips and gave Merlin a reprimanding look. "You're a horrible liar, Merlin."

"No I'm not!" was the indignant response.

"Yes you are. When you lie, your ears twitch."

Merlin gasped in horror and clutched the offending appendages tightly as if punishing them for betraying him.

"_You're_ the liar!" Merlin declared finally. "You are a lying wench and you are getting nothing out of me!"

With that, Merlin turned and strode quickly away, maneuvering around Gwen's reaching arm, one hand still clapped around his left ear while the other balanced Arthur's tray. And Gwen could do nothing but yell after him as he hobbled away to Arthur's chambers.

Oddly enough, the third to notice was Uther, who was quickly followed by Gaius, and Merlin was sure that he would never be able to look either of them in the eye ever again.

It happened at dinnertime. Arthur had insisted that Merlin be included in serving staff that night, even though Merlin never usually served unless it was Samhain or some other equally important celebration. But who was he to deny his master? (Although he did sneak in a glare when Arthur turned triumphantly to him after suggesting the prospect to his father.)

That's how Merlin found himself in the dining room at six o'clock sharp, dressed in a form-fitting blue tunic and freshly washed breeches, his boots polished to perfection. He hated wearing the crisp new clothing and wished he could wear at least something of his own clothing, but no matter how he'd insisted, Linda, the head cook, had absolutely refused, under any circumstance, to allow him to wear his scarf.

When the king strode in, fashionably late as usual, followed by Arthur and Morgana, as well as a few visiting nobles, Merlin and the rest of the servants stepped forward to fill the goblets with wine. Merlin was catering to Arthur, and he drew back with the jug at the exact moment Arthur reached for his goblet, their hands brushing in the process. Their eyes met for a fraction of a second, and then Merlin quickly stepped away.

Merlin was sure nobody had witnessed the exchange, but when he looked up again, he found Uther's eyes on him, his gaze contemplative. Merlin gulped.

The king turned to Arthur then, and just when Merlin thought he was safe, Uther spoke, not loudly, but not so soft that Merlin couldn't hear. "A word, Arthur, if you will," he said.

Arthur put down his spoon. "Of course, Father. What is it?"

"You see, Arthur… I understand that sometimes, when one sees something new and appealing, one desires it as one's own," said Uther. "And that is perfectly all right. But one must be careful not to get too… attached." The king looked momentarily at Merlin and then back at Arthur. He didn't look angry, only the slightest bit threatening, but Merlin blushed to the roots of his hair.

Arthur seemed to be in shock for a moment, but he quickly recovered. "Father, I don't know what you could possibly mean by that."

"I think you do," said Uther. "Or at least, your manservant does, judging by the way he's walking."

Merlin couldn't see Arthur's face anymore because he'd turned away from his father, but Merlin could have sworn that Arthur was blushing as well.

"I appreciate your concern, Father," Arthur muttered, before clearing his throat. "But it is not a matter to worry yourself with." And with that, Arthur raised his wine glass, nodded at Morgana, who had been looking between Uther and Arthur with suspicion, and downed it all in one go.

Later, after Merlin had helped Arthur to his chambers (he'd had one goblet too many, though Merlin had attempted to stop him), he returned to his own bedchamber, where he found Gaius waiting up for him with folded arms and a raised eyebrow.

"Would you care to explain what the king was discussing with Arthur tonight? I only ask because his majesty kept glancing at you as he spoke," Gaius said pointedly when Merlin walked past him to change out of his stiff serving wear. "And while you're at it, why don't you tell me why exactly you're walking with the gait of a bow-legged horse."

"Hello to you too, Gaius," Merlin said when he reemerged from his room, ignoring the old man's questions. "I'm going to be assisting the prince until very late tonight, so don't wait up. You've exhausted yourself these past few days; you need the rest."

Merlin grabbed his rucksack from beside the door and slipped out with an over-the-shoulder wave, leaving Gaius to splutter behind him, "Get back here this instant you insufferable… Merlin!"

"I hate you, you know," Merlin gasped, supporting himself over Arthur with shaky hands and rubbing their erections together in agonizingly perfect strokes. He reached one hand down to capture both of them in his hand. "I knew you were smug about something this morning." He stopped short and moaned at a particularly hard thrust from Arthur. "You- you knew they would see. That they would – _aargh, Arthur_ – know what we'd done."

Arthur bit his neck then, hard, and Merlin's answering moan nearly drowned out Arthur's words. "Did you feel it all day?" he asked breathlessly, frotting against Merlin mindlessly, nails scraping along Merlin's forearms. "Did you- did you think about it with every step you took?"

Merlin only groaned in response and thrust harder, faster.

"Were you – _oh, ohhh_ – embarrassed when they asked about it? Father and all the rest. Did you think about me fucking your tight little hole every time someone looked at you funny?"

Merlin came with a shout, Arthur's name intermingled with a moan, spilling all over his hand and Arthur's chest. He kept thrusting through the aftershocks, kept going until he was too sore and sensitive and exhausted to move any longer. He lay there for a while catching his breath, softly petting Arthur's cock until Arthur began to twitch under his fingers. Then he slithered down, on his knees over Arthur's legs, and leaned close, only breathing hotly on his cock before taking it all into his mouth with one great stroke.

Arthur let out a stuttered groan. "Merlin- oh gods, Merlin, yes, _please_."

Merlin sucked deeply, hollowing out his cheeks and erratically slurping with his tongue. He pulled back, then, all the way out with a pop, and a string of saliva and precome trailed after him. He grinned. "Yeah, I thought about you," he said throatily. "About how your cock felt inside me, so tight and full and perfect." He licked along the underside of Arthur's shaft, once, twice. "I wanted everyone to know that it was you who did that to me. That you're _mine_." He growled and trailed his tongue along the leaking slit.

Arthur nearly sat up with the force of his gasp. "I think you mean that you're mine," he breathed, attempting to sound authoritative but only managing to sound so utterly debauched that Merlin had to go back in for another swipe. "I'm the prince, Merlin."

"And I'm not your princess," Merlin said before returning to suckling.

"No," Arthur gasped, running his hands over Merlin's body, over and over. "You're definitely not that."

And when Merlin took him into his mouth again he came with a jolt, shooting down Merlin's throat. Despite the initial shock, Merlin swallowed it all, humming around Arthur's cock and eliciting another spurt of hot come.

Merlin kept him in his mouth, swallowing around him, until Arthur began to grow soft and slipped out wetly. Arthur hauled him up and kissed him lazily, breathing hard. Merlin touched his tongue to Arthur's, letting him taste himself in Merlin's mouth until Arthur drew him even closer, both arms wrapped around Merlin's skinny shoulders.

"My jaw hurts," Merlin complained when they pulled back, and Arthur chuckled. "Really, sex with you only seems to be causing me physical injury."

Arthur shrugged. "We can stop if you want," he said innocently. "I can find someone else more accommodating if you- _aargh!_"

Merlin tickled Arthur relentlessly, all along his sides and stomach and down to his toes. "What was that about someone else?" he growled playfully.

"N-nothing – _oh, ah, stop!_ – nothing Merlin, nobody else, okay? Mercy!"

Merlin stopped, using his fingers to caress Arthur's neck instead. "Good boy," he said approvingly, dropping a sloppy kiss on Arthur's jaw.

They lay there for a while, occasionally stroking each other's chest, hips, stomach – whatever they could reach. After a while, when Merlin was just beginning to feel sleep drift into the edges of his consciousness, Arthur spoke.

"Can I fuck you?"

Merlin blinked. Then he grabbed a pillow from above him and threw it at Arthur's face. "Horny prat, go to sleep," he mumbled.

But Arthur wasn't having it. He swung his right leg over Merlin, hovering over him in mimicry of Merlin's position before. "I command you to obey me," he declared.

"Do you now," Merlin said blandly, yawning and turning onto his side as if Arthur wasn't already half-hard above him.

Arthur began planting imploring kisses down Merlin's side until Merlin finally slipped away with a huff. He gathered his clothes on the way to the door (how did his breeches end up all the way over there?) and slipped them on while throwing an "I am leaving and you can toss off by yourself," over his shoulder. He smirked at a protesting Arthur and flung open the door-

Only to jump back with a yelp when Gwen, Lance, and Elyan fell face-first into the room. They quickly jumped to their feet and cleared their throats, flashing guilty glances at each other and shuffling their feet.

Merlin's mouth dropped open and his seemingly perpetual blush was back. Except this time, it was a mix of embarrassment and anger. "Were you… _eavesdropping_?"

There were mutters all around and more shuffling of feet. Finally Gwen looked up and said, "We were only trying to find out the truth. You wouldn't say anything so we… took matters into our own hands."

Merlin opened and closed his mouth a few times, speechless, before whirling around as a sudden thought struck him. "You!" he said to Arthur, who was smiling very suspiciously. "You knew they were there! That's why you-" He made a choked-off frustrated sound and Arthur broke into laughter, falling back into the sheets.

That was when Merlin noticed the prince was still very much naked and very much aroused. Merlin coughed and the others looked pointedly away.

"We will talk about this later," Merlin said sternly to their uninvited guests. "When all of us present are _fully clothed_." There was a muffled sound from the bed that could have meant either agreement or protest.

Lance and Gwen shuffled out, but Elyan stayed behind. He coughed awkwardly. "Um, you know, Merlin, I really don't need to discuss this later. I am perfectly happy to just forget any of this happened-"

"Goodbye, Elyan," Merlin interrupted and shoved the flustered knight out the door, closing it behind him with a sigh. "Great," he muttered, rubbing his forehead to staunch his growing headache. "There goes my chance of getting any sleep tonight."

"Does that mean you'll stay?" asked Arthur hopefully, poking his head up from between the sheets to look at Merlin.

Merlin scowled at the prince. "Horny sod, I don't know why I put up with you."

Arthur smiled, obviously recognizing the acquiescence in Merlin's words. Merlin grinned back despite himself before shedding his clothes again and pouncing on his prince. They didn't stop to wonder if Gwen and the rest were still outside the door.

The next morning, when Merlin walked slowly to the kitchens to get Arthur's breakfast, wincing with each step, the cook gave him a knowing look. On his way back he was stopped by no less than seven knights congratulating him on his "conquest" (though, he noted, Elyan and Lance were not among them). And he was stopped on the second floor landing by Gaius, who had just been to see the prince and who gave him nothing more than a raised eyebrow. By the time Merlin ducked back into Arthur's room, he was red from head to toe and more than a little irritated when Arthur smirked at him from the bed.

"Prat," Merlin muttered, setting down Arthur's breakfast with perhaps more force than was entirely necessary.

"But you love me anyway," Arthur teased, and promptly tumbled out of the bed in his attempt to crawl to the breakfast table.

Merlin burst into laughter, and then winced when his arse clenched. "Yeah," he said as Arthur scowled and rubbed his own wounded bottom. "I do."


End file.
